Select an appropriate search tool based on discipline and task at hand.
Construct a search based on keywords and use basic search strategies
Condense or expand as necessary using search string and facets.
1. Ask students to choose a topic, develop key terms to search with, and use two different databases to locate information on their topic. Have them compare the results in terms of quantity, types of sources (e.g., government, educational, scholarly, commercial), order/sequence of results, and relevance. Pair students who used different databases with the same topics to compare results.
2. Assign students to identify and use subject headings after conducting a keyword search; after which they write a paragraph on the differences between subject and keyword searching.
(From University of Washington's Research 101 tutorial)
These questions can be added to Canvas as a graded homework assignment. A librarian embedded in your course can create, grade, and provide feedback.
Searching is Strategic